Why I’m Involved With IoT613
By Colin Pennie, CTO at Huckleberry Marketing and Advertising
We all love the latest, shiny, new flashy thing.
Think about it…. The new, sleek, upgraded, fully locked and loaded ready to turbo charge your life… it’s awesome.
As someone fascinated by shiny, flashy new things – I’m drawn to the Internet of Things (IoT) because it is the defining new tech shaping the future in the digital age. As CTO of a digital marketing agency, aside from operations, I research new technologies and evaluate their implementability. My focus is always on people and how they can benefit from digital and tech. And that’s why I’m involved in IoT613 – it’s got the sizzle and the substance.
Spoiler alert: The Internet of Things (IoT) presents the biggest opportunity in human history for growth and development, and to make everyone’s life easier while increasing shared prosperity.
If you’re not already in the know about how much IoT is already being used, or what’s underway with IoT right now, you’re about to find out.
TL;DR: Internet of Things technology is the fastest growing industry on the planet. IoT613 is the annual Internet of Things event (this year is the 4th) where industry experts, business owners, market insiders, entrepreneurs, investors, academics, researchers, government officials, inventors and more come together to share ideas, network and grow. Check it out here.
New Possibilities, New Solutions
Over the next few decades, we’ll see problems that usually take years to solve figured out in one study using AI, we’ll see data reclaimed by users and organizations using blockchain and quantum encryption, we’ll approach full global internet access, and hardware will get close to Star Trek level ability. It’s about to get all IoT up in here.
What does that mean for people?
It means it’ll be possible to create systems that feed everyone, provide shelter and access to education worldwide, implement a zero waste global economy, end war and conflict, and get space exploration really moving. We’ll be able to help both people and the ecosystem on this planet thrive. Also we’ll have a ridiculous amount of fun.
Oh and jetpacks. I’m in it for the jetpacks.
IoT is a Trillion Dollar Market
What’s IoT? In a nutshell, IoT implements internet’s capabilities so that we can gain the real benefits of technology that already exists. It enables us to implement new technologies faster than ever before. It will make all of our lives easier with access to technology the same way the internet has made everyone’s lives easier with access to information and communication. Check out the P.S. if you want more of the nitty gritty details on IoT.
As IoT gets bigger, (it’s already a trillion dollar market and growing), costs will decrease and abilities will increase. Manufacturing (Industry 4.0) will become more automated, customized, and local to provide jobs in all areas with big populations. Farming will become automated, precise, local and connected directly to you (think of being able to select the berries on a live feed from a greenhouse and a robot picks, washes and packages them and a drone drops them off to you).
IoT is Shaping the Future of How We Work, Play and Live
IoT tech is leading the future of how we live… when you leave home, tech will tidy and clean your house, do your dishes and laundry, order food and prep dinner, walk the dog and get everything ready for your triumphant return.
IoT is what will enable all transportation to be fast, efficient, and safe. At first, this might be through live connected diagnostics and self-driving programs, so that even if there is a crash, all other vehicles will automatically slow down and go around seamlessly and there will no longer be any traffic jams. Then as drone and integrated road tech is integrated, we’ll just go up and over to pass slower or stopped vehicles, and road conditions will be updated and addressed instantly.
Work will be a thing you do, not a place you go – unless you want to. With a laptop and a cellphone, you’ll be able to access live actionable data, communicate with your team, generate easy to understand reports, and implement changes and updates seamlessly. “How’s the construction project going?” “The 3d building printer is finishing the roof, our people and drone teams are finishing the interior, another customized home delivered within a week.” If all these IoT devices are doing work, will that be a threat to your job? Nope.
IoT will make your job easier and easier with each update. There will be fewer accidents, mistakes, and issues.
For jobs that are information based, this is happening now with digital transformation. For work that is materials based, this will happen with IoT, and be implemented faster because digital integration is working out the systems now. Your work will be better because it will use your best skills, reduce your tedious or inefficient tasks, provide more value for your time, and drain less of your energy.
Bottom line?
IoT is leading a global transformation that will make everyone’s lives safer, easier, more fun and more productive. With less stress across the world, people will be able to spend more time with family and friends, more energy to care for our amazing home planet and the incredible diversity of life it supports, and the technology to go explore our solar system and beyond.
Smart and Sustainable
IoT will help create, implement and support shared prosperity for the planet, and foster a future for all people that is safe, sustainable, and fun. That’s why people in all fields of tech are working towards IoT integration, that’s why governments and NGOs are working towards digital government and smart cities, and that’s why it’s moving faster every day.
I got involved with IoT613 because it’s a hub for supporting Canadian IoT, and because their annual conference is awesome. More than that, the team at IoT613 brings together technical, digital, and personal skills to empower people in and out of the IoT field to learn about IoT, to help users, designers, stakeholders and engineers to interact to increase the benefits and impact of IoT, and to connect people working towards a better future for everyone. If you’d like to learn more about the Internet of Things, meet some amazingly cool and forward-thinking people, connect with the fastest rising stars in the Canadian IoT market right now, I highly recommend you check this epic event out. Right now, IoT613 is open for registration here.
Ready for the next wave of hot new tech? Me too, looking forward to seeing you there 😊
P.S. If you’re anything like me, you’re probably wondering about the nitty gritty of how IoT works. I work with executives, comms teams, sales teams, entrepreneurs, professionals, students – all kinds of cool and talented people (I’m very fortunate like that). I also spend a lot of time doing what I call English-to-English translation. So instead of using a bunch of confusing acronyms and jargon, I’ll briefly explain what the internet of things is for all of the detail-oriented minds out there.
Basically, IoT is stuff connected to the internet…Your desktop computer, tablet or cell phone you’re reading this on is an Internet of Things device. Also you’ve been involved in the growth of IoT for more than 20 years without knowing it.
Now before IoT professionals start getting technical about usage, sensors and interfaces, let me explain that to people in the IoT field, these are often not considered IoT. Why? Because the IoT field is in the process of integrating all other mechanical and electronic devices into the Internet of Things, and their focus is on the sensor side at the moment.
My everyday work is more focused on getting the benefits from digital tools, so I see the IoT differently. In order to share my view clearly, I’m going to have to explain computers and the internet in my own way. Computers are machines that can run computer programs, and the internet is computers connected together.
The internet is made up of four parts: computer programs (software), information (data), users (people) and electronics (hardware). So you have your smartphone (hardware) with your apps (software) where you (user) can read this blog (data). And that’s the internet.
Let’s go over that again because so many people get mixed up on this. The Internet’s four parts are software, data, users, and hardware. The computer programs (software) are anything that processes some information from operating systems to programs, apps, AI, Big Data analytics, machine learning, data science, algorithms and so on. The information (data) is all the words, numbers and stuff people or hardware brings into or out of computer programs. The users (people) are any people who interact with a software program to put in or take out information. Finally the electronics (hardware) is the actual physical object that receives, stores, transmits, and displays information and computer programs – aka the part you could hit with a baseball bat.
Where it gets really confusing is that there’s a lot more of each part of the internet involved each time you use the internet. For example with the hardware, your cellphone connects to a cell tower usually hardwired to actual wires connected to switches, routers, servers, and the huge infrastructure of physically and wirelessly connected networks and datacenters across the world that make up the internet. So ignoring all the confusing stuff, let’s get back to the internet-
The internet started out as a project to share information between computers. Computers already existed and could do big calculations and sense things, and as they started to get better at storing information, people wanted to be able to access the information from different places. People could share information with each other by talking over the phone (landlines), so people figured out how to do that with computers too and created networks. Then they figured out how to connect one network of computers to another to make ‘interconnected networks’ (internet).
Considering that this kind of technology started in various forms and places prior to World War II, was being implemented in large scale with radar and more in the 1950s, was connecting defense networks in the 1960/70s, being commercialized in the 1980/90s, and connecting worldwide users from the 1990s to now, it has grown and advanced at an amazing rate! What’s happening now is that all four parts of the internet are advanced enough to do pretty much anything you could think of.
Want to know more? IoT613 Conference 2019 is the best place to get all the details about the newest shiniest achievements in IoT. Get your tickets before it’s sold out: https://iot613.ca/2019-conference/#tickets
Disclaimer: IoT613 Conference 2019 tickets are available on a first-come, first-serve basis.
